Master plan lists recreation center as high-priority project

Tuesday

GALESBURG — A recreation center with an estimated price tag of $30 million made the cut as a high-priority project in the city of Galesburg’s parks and recreation master plan.

Houseal Lavigne Associates, the planning firm the city contracted with to create the master plan, included a “capital improvement” list in the master plan that prioritized projects the city could choose to bring to life. The firm ranked the projects as having “high,” “medium” or “low” priority, based on the feedback Houseal Lavigne received from residents.

In total, Houseal Lavigne listed 11 projects as “high priority,” including a $30 million recreation center. The ideal recreation center would total approximately 150,000 square feet in size and include a “running track, two indoor multipurpose courts, gym, meeting room, concession, activity rooms, indoor aquatics and 25-meter lap pool,” according to the master plan.

The master plan also included a list of grants and programs the city could apply to in order to help finance construction of the various projects. Two Illinois Department of Natural Resources grants could assist with the funding for a recreation center: the Park & Recreational Facility Construction grant program and the Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development Grant.

The PARC program awards up to $2.5 million per project, according to the master plan. That could be used for the construction of a new facility, the renovation or expansion of an existing facility or to help cover the costs of site preparation or utility work for a capital project.

OSLAD grants cover half the cost of a project up to $400,000, but the money could not be used for new building construction because the grant focuses on developing public parks and open spaces. The city, however, could acquire new land with the money and build a recreation center on the land, said Devin Lavigne, principal and co-founder of Houseal Lavigne Associates. The city also could use OSLAD money to expand an existing recreation center if it was part of a site preparation concept for a larger community park.

“If we’re doing, say, outdoor basketball courts next to a recreation center that has indoor basketball courts, the whole site improvement can happen at the same time,” Lavigne said. “What communities have done is they’ve phased projects. So if they knew the project was $1.6 million, they would apply for (OSLAD funding for) phase one.”

Houseal Lavigne’s ranking was based on residents’ feedback at in-person outreach events, a needs-assessment survey and an S-Map digital tool residents could use to mark projects they would like to see in Galesburg. Some projects that ranked high in the needs-assessment survey of 374 residents — such as a mini-golf course and a connecting of the city’s bike and walking paths — clocked in at a “medium” or “medium-to-low” priority in the final tally.

Galesburg City Manager Todd Thompson and Tony Oligney-Estill, director of parks and recreation for the city, noted that the city would not necessarily commit to developing the recreation center right away, nor would the center necessarily include all the features suggested in the master plan if the city did commit to such a project. The master plan serves as an overall guideline for the city, but Houseal Lavigne leaves the city to determine what projects will be done depending on the amount of funding and staff available.

The city, for instance, would need to find multiple funding sources besides the two suggested grants to come up with the $30 million. The city most likely would need to take out multiple bonds and find a steady source of revenue with which to pay them off, Thompson said.

“The other thing to think about when you’re talking about capital improvements is, ‘what’s it going to cost to operate it?’” Thompson said. “… Part of your feasibility analysis has to consider both the construction and operation of the facility.”

The city also has not decided on a potential location for a recreation center, although Lavigne said the former O.T. Johnson lot and the former U.S. National Guard Armory could be viable options due to their downtown locations.

Alternatively, grant funding could be obtained to cover more of the cost of another project on the list. Oligney-Estill gave the example of the connection of the city’s walking and bike trails. The city is considering applying for the 2019 Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program grant for the project. Oligney-Estill estimated that grant would cover approximately $1.2 million.

“Part of it is not just the desire by the community and what they want, but also what funding is available and what opportunities we have to get some of these things done,” Oligney-Estill said. “A portion of it might be cost; a portion might be we just can’t get the proper location for something. Those could be the reasons why something might be a priority for residents but the city may put it further down the list.”

The final parks and recreation master plan is expected to go to the Galesburg City Council for a vote on Monday, Aug. 20, since the council recommended making changes at its Monday work session that require implementation and consideration. Thompson expected that the city would start creating its capital improvements plan at the Monday, Aug. 27 work session, and that specific projects in the master plan would be discussed at the meeting.